Amid ongoing protests in Ferguson, Mo., the national conversation about racial justice and police force has ignored a critical point that needs to be discussed, said Fox News pundit Juan Williams

Civil rights activists and black leaders have failed to address the very thing that’s fueling conservative, white backlash — the high crime rate among the black community, particularly among young black men, Williams said on Aug. 24th’s Fox News Sunday.

"I think there’s fear of intimidation, harassment being legitimized by the fact that there is a high rate of crime, especially among young black men," Williams said. "No. 1 cause of death, young black men 15 to 34 — murder. Who’s committing the murder? Not police. Other black men."

Last year, PolitiFact found that 93 percent of murder victims were killed by someone who shares their race. This time, we want to check out Williams’ claim that homicide is the No. 1 cause of death for black men 15-34 years old.

Unnatural causes

We looked at numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which lists the leading causes of death across all demographics.

Experts said that CDC data, compiled from coroner reports, are in line with FBI numbers, sourced from police reports. The CDC does not distinguish between the types of homicide (criminal, justified, etc.) or the types of accidents (auto accidents, falls, firearm discharge, etc.). The numbers for 2011, the most recent CDC findings, are consistent with data from previous years.

According to the CDC, homicide was indeed the No. 1 killer of black men between the ages of 15 and 34 in 2011. Accidents ranked second in causes of death, and suicide claimed the third amount of black male lives between 15 and 24 years old, while heart disease ranked third for men 24-34.

Amid ongoing protests in Ferguson, Mo., the national conversation about racial justice and police force has ignored a critical point that needs to be discussed, said Fox News pundit Juan Williams

Civil rights activists and black leaders have failed to address the very thing that’s fueling conservative, white backlash — the high crime rate among the black community, particularly among young black men, Williams said on Aug. 24th’s Fox News Sunday.

"I think there’s fear of intimidation, harassment being legitimized by the fact that there is a high rate of crime, especially among young black men," Williams said. "No. 1 cause of death, young black men 15 to 34 — murder. Who’s committing the murder? Not police. Other black men."

Last year, PolitiFact found that 93 percent of murder victims were killed by someone who shares their race. This time, we want to check out Williams’ claim that homicide is the No. 1 cause of death for black men 15-34 years old.

Unnatural causes

We looked at numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which lists the leading causes of death across all demographics.

Experts said that CDC data, compiled from coroner reports, are in line with FBI numbers, sourced from police reports. The CDC does not distinguish between the types of homicide (criminal, justified, etc.) or the types of accidents (auto accidents, falls, firearm discharge, etc.). The numbers for 2011, the most recent CDC findings, are consistent with data from previous years.

According to the CDC, homicide was indeed the No. 1 killer of black men between the ages of 15 and 34 in 2011. Accidents ranked second in causes of death, and suicide claimed the third amount of black male lives between 15 and 24 years old, while heart disease ranked third for men 24-34.

Leading causes of death among black males

1st

2nd

3rd

All ages

Diseases of the heart

Malignant neoplasms

Accidents

1-4

Accidents

Homicide

Congenital malformations

5-14

Accidents

Malignant neoplasms

Homicide

15-24

Homicide

Accidents

Suicide

25-34

Homicide

Accidents

Diseases of the heart

35-44

Diseases of the heart

Accidents

Homicide

45-54

Diseases of the heart

Malignant neoplasms

Accidents

55-84

Malignant neoplasms

Diseases of the heart

Cerebrovascular diseases

84-older

Diseases of the heart

Malignant neoplasms

Cerebrovascular diseases

Source: CDC

Click to expand...

Black people kill each other, therefore, the cops can take their lives as the backlash against the violent community is justified? Damn. Where in the constitution does it say anything along those lines? Let's just skip due process, and anoint police as judge, jury, and executioners as long as they're policing blacks. This is how EVERYONE's liberty is eaten away. Use excuses like this to justify wrongdoing. That fuck in Ferguson was fighting with a police officer. To me, that's enough to give me doubt that the officer was in the wrong. But some of these other cases simply ridiculous. Selling single cigarettes requires a heavy handed team to make an arrest? Resisting arrest is now a capital crime?

I can't image going to work and receiving a notice like that.
Plenty of bullshit at my job but no one is looking to kill me.
I think most cops are decent guys but the bad actions of a few taint all of them.
These folks that are marching in protest need to watch the TV show "Cops".
Or, better yet do a ride along and see what these guys deal with each and every day.
You couldn't pay me enough to do that work.